


Player Three Has Joined the Game

by themthere_taterthings



Series: Hellooo Nurse! Verse [3]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Anaphylaxis, Jealous Bucky Barnes, M/M, Mild Gore, Minor Loki/Tony Stark, crush injuries, nurse!tony
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-24
Updated: 2016-12-24
Packaged: 2018-09-11 14:05:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8983669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/themthere_taterthings/pseuds/themthere_taterthings
Summary: Tony is trying to get ready for date 3 with Bucky and Steve, but his friends have other ideas and another suitor makes an offer....





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! Thanks for the support on this story, I appreciate each and every comment so much! Just a warning, this installment has some gore associated with Tony's job (crush injuries from a car crash - it's not too gory, but if it's not your thing...well....do what you gotta do).

The seating area around the good coffee cart in the oncology wing is practically empty when Tony slumps into a seat, forehead meeting the glass tabletop. This part of the hospital is new and well-funded so it has the snazzy little coffee cart and modern, sleek metal and glass seating.

It doesn’t make sense to him at all; people who are in this wing generally have the worst deal. Their bodies betraying them and the medicine only making them feel worse. This wing should be warm and inviting, with squishy couches and areas for families, not cold and fancy. Just shows who does the designing around here.

That being the case, hospital staff were usually the only patrons. Sure, it cost actual money to get coffee here, but it was so worth it.

Tony doesn’t bother looking up when a cup of coffee is set down next to his face. He can practically feel how hot it is and the smell, mmm, well it’s incredible. “Thank you,” he says, leaning his head to the side far enough to see Jan sit next to him with her signature yellow scrubs. He doesn’t know how she keeps those clean; he prefers to wear dark colored scrubs just in case.

“You’re welcome, but I didn’t get you coffee just because I love you. Spill it, Tony, you’ve been weird all week and I haven’t heard crap about your date yet.”

He grimaces, sitting up to cradle the hot cup between his hands. “We might as well wait for Nat, she’s going to want to hear it too.”

“Good thing I already got her a coffee too!”

“Alright, guess Thursday’s beer is on me then.”

“I’ll drink to that!” Jan holds up her to-go cup and Tony taps it with his own and they both take a sip.

“Does that mean these are Irish coffees?” Natasha says as she walks up, pulling up the seat on Tony’s other side.

“Ha! If only,” Tony replies. “I swear if Hammer tries to tell me the best way to suture one more time, I’m going to stitch his lips together.”

There was a new person doing the scheduling and they’d completely messed up this week. Tony had been stuck working primarily with his arch-nemesis, the moronic Justin Hammer. To make things worse, Natasha and Jan had been assigned to different departments. The only saving grace was their aligning lunch breaks.

The girls both laugh. “Tony, I’d trade you but I know how you feel about the surgical doctors,” Nat says, smirking over the rim of her cup. “And everyone would rather you kill Hammer than a surgeon.”

“Please don’t kill anyone, Tony. I’m sure everyone and their grandma is going to complain about the schedule. She’ll figure it out! But we only have a half hour so let’s skip to the important stuff!” Jan scoots the very edge of her chair and stares at Tony, eyebrows raised.

“Okay! Okay! What do you want to know?” He shrinks down, holding his coffee in front of his chest like a shield. This is going to be brutal, since he’s still kind of working his way through his emotions. His date with Steve and Bucky had been nothing short of a disaster. He’s never had a date go so poorly from start to finish.

It made for a shitty weekend, that’s for sure. He’d actually come in early for his Sunday shift to set himself up with a banana bag so he wouldn’t have to work hungover. That was definitely frowned upon but he had enough seniority with the nurses that he could get away with it, as long as it wasn’t frequent.

Factor in Bucky’s apology Monday night and the subsequent phone call with Steve, he was a mess. Maybe Jan and Nat could help him work through it.

“Everything, Tony!” Jan slaps him gently on the bicep with her hand. “We know you’ve been in a funk since, so let us help.”

Gratitude for these two incredible women who were his makeshift family rushed through him. “Ok, well the date itself was half super shitty and half good.”

“Wait, how does that work?” Jan’s eyes were huge, while Natasha’s were narrowed. She was not going to be a happy camper when he got through this.

“Steve was a complete sweetheart the whole night, he’d made me this, I don’t know, Twinkie bouquet which is super clever and awesome. Not to mention observant, since he saw us eating them on Wednesday morning.” Tony gestures vaguely to Natasha.

“He took me to his favorite Italian place, hugged me, and we went clubbing but Bucky was a massive dickbag the whole time. I mean, he apologized, but he’s obviously not on the same page as Steve about inviting a third person into their relationship.”

“Well that’s a problem right there, Tony,” Natasha interjects. “As soon as they officially asked you out it’s no longer ‘their relationship’ it’s yours. All of yours.”

“He didn’t exactly put it in those kinds of words, he was just super possessive of Steve, acting like I was some stranger out to steal his boyfriend.” Tony whined. This was not making him feel any better. Saying it out loud made it a billion times worse, actually.

Maybe he’d made a mistake accepting that apology.

“That’s bullshit!” Jan exclaims, bouncing in her seat.

“You told him where to shove it when he apologized, right?” Natasha ask, voice dark.

“Uhhh…”

“Tony. You didn’t.”

Tony throws his hands up in defense. “Ok, it was stupid. I’ll admit it, I was in a bad place emotionally. I can’t be held responsible for my actions.”

“What exactly did you agree to?” A big thank you to Jan for not allowing Natasha to eat him whole.

“I said they had one more chance and they want to cook me dinner at their place.”

“No.”

“Agreed, no way!”

“I figured you’d say that.” Tony drops his head into his hands, surprisingly depressed at that thought. He really does want to see Steve again and the kiss he’d shared with Bucky had him wanting more. He knows it’s bad for his health to pine but hope is a fickle, untamable beast.  

They must be able to read something in his body language because Natasha grabs his hand away from his head, entwines their fingers and squeezes reassuringly. “Do you want to give them another chance?” She asks softly.

He nods, not trusting himself to speak.

“Ok, then you give them another chance, but make them work for it.”

“Ooh, yes, I like the sound of this!” Jan scoots her chair closer, if that’s possible.

Natasha has her evil smile on. Something amazing is about to happen. “We do this date on your terms, on your turf.” She turns her smile to Jan. “Jan, how do you feel about throwing a little party next weekend and inviting all of our friends?”

Jan squeals. Actually squeals; a tiny happy piglet loose in the oncology wing. “Yes! Perfect! Fill the house with everyone who thinks Tony is the most amazing person on the planet and they won’t be able to misbehave!”

“If they do, we’ll have Thor throw them out. _Throw_ , he’ll enjoy it.”

Tony can’t help the grin that slowly takes over his face. His best friends are evil and he loves it.

***

The following evening, Tony’s in bed alone, leaning against his headboard with a mostly empty beer bottle in one hand and his phone in the other. Usually he doesn’t drink alone because it’s depressing and makes him feel like an alcoholic.

For this, though, he’s making an exception. He’s been texting all week with Steve, and with Bucky, and the occasional group text between the three of them. Nothing serious, mostly just them checking in on him, asking how his shift was going or complaining about their jobs. Which is nice and low-stress, but no phone calls really. He hasn’t felt ready to give them that.

He’s about to call and cancel on their dinner date and ask about Jan’s party and he’s nervous. He shouldn’t be, but he is. His palms are a little sweaty and his heart is beating a little fast, and it’s because he’s afraid they’ll say no. It’s their last chance, so he’s declared, and he’s changing the rules of the game.

What if they decide it’s not worth it? He’s too demanding. He’s a diva acting the way he is.

So, yeah, tonight he needs a drink to calm his nerves. It’s not ideal, but he has weaknesses. Chugging the last few mouthfuls, he sets it on his bedside table and presses ‘Dial’ on Steve’s contact page.

“Tony?” Steve answers after a couple of rings, sounding exhausted.

“Hi Steve, is this a bad time? You sound tired.” He’s already regretting this. He should have texted first.

“No, no, of course not. It’s just been a tough week for deadlines, but I always have time to talk to you.” That’s why he called Steve; even if it was inconvenient, he’d let Tony down easy. He can’t imagine Bucky being that understanding.

“Oh, okay. Well this should be quick and then you can get back to what you were doing.” He hears a slight protest from the other end, but keeps talking. “It’s about dinner this weekend, umm, can we cancel that?”

“What? Why? I thought after Bucky’s apology we were ok. Of course, it’s ok if you’re not, I’m not trying to pressure you, but we really do want to give this another try,” Steve immediately jumps to reassure him.

Smiling to himself, Tony replies, “Steve, Steve, calm down. That’s not it at all; I just wanted to see if we could reschedule. One of my friends is having a party the following weekend and she’s invited all of us.”

“That sounds great, Tony! I’d love to meet your friends and I’m sure Bucky does too. Just tell us when and where!”

Steve’s easygoing enthusiasm sends relief flooding through him, and he relaxes into his pillows. “Ok, good. I’m glad you’ll come. I don’t know the exact details yet but I can text them to you when I find out.”

“Works for me! Oh, hey Bucky just got in, do you want to talk to him for a moment?”

“Oh no, I’ve got to go. Early shift tomorrow, just say hi for me ok? Talk to you later, Steve.” Tony does not want to talk to Bucky right now, not without some mental preparation.

“Ok,” Steve sounds a little confused, but if he’s disappointed with Tony’s answer he’s hiding it well. “Goodnight and have a good day tomorrow!”

“You too, Steve. Goodnight.” Tony hangs up before Steve can say anything else. This is bad, he shouldn’t be afraid to talk on the phone with… he doesn’t even know what to call them. Not lovers, not boyfriends, no, they’re not even technically dating.

The whole thing leaves him drained. He buries himself in his sheets pulling the lush comforter up over his head. His phone glows in the dark as he shoots a text to Jan and Natasha.

< _They’re in. Cheer me up?_ >

He’s almost instantly inundated with texts from them both; Jan asking if he’s ok and Natasha telling him a ridiculous story about Clint almost asking her out with an overabundance of emojis.

 

***

Tony and Nat finish cleaning up the emergency operating bay and step out together, tossing their used gloves in a trash can. Clint and Loki had been first on the scene of a hit and run involving a bicyclist. Luckily, the cyclist was mostly intact with the worst of his injuries being a concussion and a couple bicycle spokes embedded in his calf.

While Tony and Nat had been working on their patient, the cops had stopped Clint and Loki for their statements and they’re still loitering around the ER. Elbowing Natasha in the rib, he nods his head their way.

He holds up a hand displaying five fingers followed by a thumbs up. She shakes her head, thumbs down. He grins, he’s totally about to win five bucks when Clint asks her out. Clint is pacing in front of the doors, far enough away that they don’t whir open automatically with each pass, but he brightens noticeably as they walk over.  

“Natasha! Hi! Oh, hey Tony,” he greets them, throwing a wave to Tony almost as an afterthought.

Tony waves back, trying to reign in his grin and not give away the game. He looks over at Loki, lounging in a visitor chair like it’s a gilded throne and not some ancient plastic piece of crap. Loki rolls his eyes in Clint’s direction when he sees Tony watching.

“Think he’ll do it today?” Tony asks, leaning on the wall next to Loki’s chair.

“One can only hope,” Loki drawls in his usual haughty way. There is just something about his accent and polished mannerisms that screams ‘holier than thou.’ He could describe a quarter pounder with cheese and make it sound sexy. “As lovely as Natasha is, if I have to sit through one more lengthy tribute comparing the color of her hair to the rising sun, I’m going to stab Clint’s eyeballs out.”

Tony laughs, taking it as a joke; though Loki adds just enough vitriol that it could be taken as an actual threat. He’s intimidating that way. “Pretty sure there’s at least thirty bucks in the pot that you’ll run him over with the rig by Christmas.”

“Only thirty dollars? That’s disappointing.”

“Tell me about it. I already lost twenty because you didn’t leave Clint scene after he let that junkie bite you.”

Loki glares up at him. Maybe it’s a glare and maybe it’s just his face, though. “Really? Do you bet on me frequently, Tony?”

Tony shrugs, hoping not to offend the man. On some level he believes they’re friends, but it’s hard to tell with Loki. “Yeah, well, you’re interesting and hard to read. Not to mention, scary as fuck sometimes.”

There’s nothing wrong with a little honesty between friends, right? Loki’s not the type to punch him in the face while they’re on the clock. If he’s upset, the vengeance will likely be in the form of a very mean, possibly painful, prank.

To his surprise, Loki smiles. Big, with lots of teeth. Is that actual happiness on his face? It’s a good look for him. “Thank you, Tony.”

“Uhh… You’re welcome? I guess.” He’s not sure where the compliment was in there, but to each their own.  Just then, he spies Jan walking slowly around Clint and Nat, obviously pretending that she needs to file charts at the desk right behind them.

Nat catches on quickly, though, glaring at Jan until she continues on, an overly innocent smile on her face. Tony smothers a laugh with one hand, gesturing subtly with his other for her to come over. She scurries to him excitedly.

“It doesn’t count if Natasha asks Clint out, right? And the party definitely doesn’t count,” Jan states when she’s within hearing range.

“Definitely not,” Tony agrees. “Did she invite him to the party? Cuz that probably means I just lost five bucks.”

“Sounded like it. Oh, and Bruce from the lab is coming, which is good news because I would pay money to see him lose his temper.”

“Party?” Loki asks, one elegant brow arched. Seriously, does he tweeze those? Tony can’t imagine how much work it must be to be that well-groomed. Personally, he likes to sport what he calls ‘mad scientist chic’ and it works for him.

“Yes, I’m having a party at my place next weekend. You’re invited too, of course, Loki!”

Loki casually brushes a lock of his dark hair away from his face. “Why would I want to attend such a plebian event with all the people I see every single day?”

“Well it’s less of a ‘party’ party and more of a chance for us to scare Tony’s suitors silly. It’s a ‘Tony’s definitely too good for you’ party.” Jan says brightly.

“Suitors? Really Jan? What is this, the 18th century? Who’s getting my dowry? There’d better be at least five goats,” Tony protests.

“Suitors?” Loki asks, a strange lilt to his voice, eyes darting up to meet Tony’s. “As in multiple?”

“Yeah, kinda. It’s a polyamory thing but they’re not making a great first impression,” Tony replies quickly, starting to feel unnerved by Loki’s attention. He doesn’t want his relationship status to be a big deal around his coworkers. He gets enough crap for being a gay nurse as it is.

“Or second impressions, for that matter,” Jan adds. “Hence the party! We’re going to gang up on them and get them to treat Tony right. So will you come?”

Loki continues to stare at Tony, gaze dark and calculating. Tony has no idea what’s going on. Since when does Loki give anyone the time of day? Let alone Tony? Sure, the two of them can work up some great banter, but Loki usually walks away in a huff.

“Yes. Count me in,” Loki says to Jan, eyes not leaving Tony. “Tony is, after all, my favorite nurse.”

Tony doesn’t know what to think of that, or what to reply and he’s left gaping like a fish at Loki, who is completely unperturbed. If anything, he’s a little smug.

Catching on to the sudden awkwardness that Tony’s feeling, Jan jumps to his side, grabbing his arm in both of her hands. “Ok, great! I’ll let you know the details later! Bye Loki!” She hauls him away from Loki until they are safely out of sight around the corner.

“What the heck was that?” She whispers urgently, ramming him against the wall.

“I have no idea! Was he flirting with me? Did you catch that?” Tony’s completely incredulous, that can’t possibly be what happened, can it? He and Jan stand staring at each other, eyes wide. They’re holding onto each other’s elbows like their lives depend upon it.

“Yeah, that’s what it looked like, but Loki? He doesn’t like _anyone_.”

“So what, I’m suddenly his ‘favorite nurse’?” Tony says it mockingly. This has completely thrown him for a loop.

“I don’t know,” Jan looks thoughtful for a minute. “But Clint might know! They spend all day every day stuck in that rig together. If Loki’s secretly been pining for you, maybe he let something slip!”

“Ok, sure, we can ask, but what am I supposed to do with that information either way?” Frustration dissolving his professional façade.

Jan shrugs, “I don’t know, Tony. Have you ever considered dating Loki?”

“No!” He explodes. “Of course not! The dude hardly gives me the time of day. He’s an arrogant jackass.”

“Well, would you consider dating him?”

Tony stops to think for a moment, circling Jan so he can pace the hallway. If he’s completely honest with himself, yeah, he’s always had a bit of a thing for Loki. He’s snarky and rude, but in the unattainable, mysterious, bad-boy kind of way. Sometimes their exchange of witty barbs is the highlight of his day and the guy saves lives, so he can’t be that bad.

Not to mention, he’s hot. Not at all in the way of Steve or Bucky but he is tall, lean, and gorgeous. The enticing mixture of vibrant green eyes and jet black hair, that looks so soft and practically called out to be touched. He’s just always been so standoffish that Tony’s never entertained it as a real thought.

“Maybe? I don’t know. Probably.”

Jan looks a little shocked at that, nodding her head repeatedly. “Ok. Ok. We can deal with this. This could be a very good thing, Tony!”

“What do you mean?”

“If Loki asks you out, you can say yes and casually date all three guys. It may be motivation for Bucky and Steve to treat you better if that’s what they really want and you can see if you prefer the poly relationship or a regular one with Loki. See what you like! Experiment! It’s okay to be greedy about this, Tony.”

He shakes his head, doubts crowding around inside. He’s always been monogamous, as in one ‘one night stand’ at a time and the occasional boyfriend or girlfriend, none of which lasted very long. “I don’t know, Jan. I’m already having problems with this polyamory thing. You’re asking me to navigate essentially three relationships at once. It stresses me out just thinking about it!”

“Ok, right, sorry. I’m not trying to make this worse, Tony! But consider the matter tabled. There’s no guarantee that Loki will even make a move. If he does, you can tell him you’re trying this other thing but if it doesn’t work out maybe the timing will be perfect. If anything, I’ll bet Loki would be a willing sexy rebound fling.”

He laughs at that. “Ok, let’s go with that and get back to work. I’m tired of talking about my love life.”

“That sounds perfect Tony!” Jan leans in and hugs him tightly. “I’ll get Nat to do some recon with Clint and see what happens! So exciting!” 

“Yeah, exciting,” he mumbles under his breath. He’s halfway expecting a choir to burst through the ER doors singing a chorus of ‘it’s raining men’ and is definitely relieved when it’s just another gurney with another bleeding patient.

***

Tony stares at the vending machine, willing the contents to change into something more appetizing. Usually he’s fine with the assortment of chips and granola bars but there had been a power outage at his apartment and he’d missed his alarm and breakfast. He’s starving but still can’t muster the motivation to run all the way up to the cafeteria for their soggy pre-packaged sandwiches.

 He’s narrowed his selection down to sour cream and onion chips (tasty, but he’ll have to find some breath mints) or the peanut butter protein bar. He’s leaning toward the protein bar, but who really knows how long that’s been in there? The handful of change he has isn’t enough for more than one choice, unfortunately. He’ll have to supplement calories by loading his coffee with sugar.

 The door to the breakroom swings open and he smiles wearily at Natasha. “What’s up, Nat? You on lunch?”

 “Nah, not for another half hour, but you have a lunch guest,” she says, sidling up to lean on the soda machine with her arms crossed. Her expression is unimpressed but calculating. It’s scary and he doesn’t like it directed at him.

 “Really? Who?” He isn’t expecting anyone, unless he’s really that unorganized today and forgot it completely.

 Natasha’s eyes narrow. “Loki.”

 “You’re shitting me. That’s not funny, Nat.” He starts putting quarters in the machine; screw this, sour cream and onion sound great.

 She reaches out and bats his hand away, pressing the cancel button so his change clangs to the bottom tray. “I’m serious. He just showed up at the check-in desk. Casual clothes, bags of food, asking for you. You didn’t know he was coming?”

 “Uhhhh, no. This is news to me. Like breaking news! What?!” As he processes that Loki is really here with intent to eat lunch with him, he panics.

 “Is this because he was flirting with you the other day?”

 “Probably. Oh man, what do I do?” He runs his hands through his hair, why is Loki here today of all days? He’s completely unprepared and frazzled today and not in the mood for emotional manipulation.

 Natasha ducks down and pulls his ejected change from the tray, holding it out to him. “First of all, go eat lunch with the man. It’s free food! And it’s definitely better than those protein bars. I tried one last week; it was like eating a log. Second of all,” she pauses before shaking her head and pushing him toward the door. “There is no second, just go eat lunch. Talk. Recon. I expect details later.”

 Suddenly he’s out of the safety of the break room, standing in front of Loki holding a handful of coins and Nat is nowhere to be seen. Damn that woman! How is she so sneaky?

 “Loki! Hi! What are you doing here?” He tries to school his expression into something a little less ‘deer in the headlights’. This is just lunch. With a friend. No. Big. Deal.

 “Hello Tony.” Loki runs a quick appreciative glance over Tony’s form, top to bottom, causing Tony to fight away a blush. “I was hoping you’d be able to join me for a quick lunch.” He holds a bag aloft so Tony can see the logo. A faint delicious aroma wafts over and Tony’s eyes widen in excitement.

 “Is that…?”

 “Meatball subs from Lenny’s deli. With garlic knots,” Loki states, all sultry and seductive and Tony groans aloud. Those sandwiches are definitely Tony’s weak spot. He’d eat them every day if he could, so it was good that it was just a few blocks too far to make on their short lunch breaks.

 Tony would eat lunch with the devil himself if he brought Lenny’s. 

 “Oh God, yes! You have no idea the things I would do for one of those meatball subs! Break room?” Tony grabs Loki’s arm, dragging him off without bothering to wait for a response. He’s rewarded with a low chuckle.

 “Oh, but maybe I’d like to know.” Tony turns, gaping at his accidental innuendo but bursts into laughter at Loki’s over exaggerated leer.

 “I don’t think so, buddy. Kinks are definitely third date discussions.” Tony sits down at the two-seater table by the window making grabby hands at the food. Loki takes his time setting out the food onto the table, getting napkins and putting the garlic knots in the center. He even grabs a couple of cokes from the soda machine, putting one in front of Tony with a smile.

 He doesn’t sit, though. Instead, he presses both hands to the tabletop leaning over Tony who is forced to tip his head back to maintain eye contact. “Then perhaps I should ask you on a first soon.”

 Tony gapes, at a complete loss for words. He’s known Loki for years but the man had never turned on the charm like this before. It was intimidating… and maybe a little hot. He scrambles for a response but fails, so he waggles his eyebrows wildly and reaches for a sandwich, brandishing it in front of Loki’s face. “Maybe so, Lokes, but for now…Lunch!”

 He curses himself for ever lamenting his lack of a love life because now he’s practically drowning in interest.

 The rest of lunch passes without much fanfare. Tony only has a 30 minute break, so they eat quickly and conversation is a constant, easy flow with Loki even managing to make Tony laugh a few times. When Natasha comes in for her lunch, they stand to clean the table and throw away their trash. In the hall, Tony downs the remainder of his coke and tosses the empty can, turning to find Loki in his personal bubble.

 “Well, thanks for lunch, Lokes. That was a very pleasant surprise,” Tony says honestly. Lunch had indeed been extremely pleasant and stress free. His mood doing a complete 180.    

 “You’re quite welcome, Tony. I enjoyed our meal as well.” Loki leans forward and presses a quick chaste kiss to his cheek. With a last, “See you around,” he waltzes away on his long legs, leaving Tony flabbergasted in his wake.

 He turns to look through the glass pane of the doorway into the break room and sees Natasha staring at him, equally shocked. She mouths, ‘what the fuck’ but he’s got nothing so he shrugs and heads back to the board to check the status of his patients.

 ***

The radio crackles to life at the ER charge desk, which is never a good sign. It’s the overnight Thursday shift and it’s just now edging into the early hours of Friday morning. Technically, he’s off in four hours with plenty of time to sleep and prep for Jan’s party, but as he listens to the message to dispatch, he resigns himself to pulling at least a double shift, maybe two and a half.

 “Attention everyone,” he calls, loud enough to gather the attention of the nurses and aids around the ER. “We’ve got an inbound MVA, at least six cars, fourteen and counting trauma injuries. First round, four minutes out.”

 With his announcement of the serious situation that is coming their way, chaos takes over the ER. The senior nurses like himself are directing the others as they coordinate to prepare the bays for emergency surgery. They have eight bays that are fully equipped for surgical procedures and he goes to each, adding a cart of extra supplies to each, doing a quick check if everything is in place.

 All stable current patients are being moved to the rooms, where the doors can be shut so that they aren’t exposed to the blood and gore that can come with situations like this; not everyone can handle stress and death.

 He’s pleased that within two minutes, the ER is ready for their first patients. Someone has placed calls upstairs and the on-call surgeons and emergency doctors and PA’s are lining up at the doors to the ambulance drive-up.

 The rigs arrive and Tony is pleased that he doesn’t have to assign nurses or aids to patients; his team steps up to the plate beautifully. He jumps on the bad cases that need a few extra nurses and then bounces between rooms, ensuring that no patient is ever without a single nurse; two being ideal. The aids are on the ball, keeping supplies in stock and as stable patients are moved to the OR or recovery, new patients are brought into clean rooms.

It’s several hours after that initial call, not that it’s obvious from the tumultuous state of the ER, when things are finally slowing down. Tony steps out of a surgical bay, wiping the sweat off of his forehead with the back of his arm, glad that the last patient has been seen too.

“Help! We need help!” Someone yells and Tony recognizes Loki as he bursts into the ER. He looks harried, his dark blue uniform top mostly untucked. He spots Tony, grabbing him by the elbow. “Tony!” He says, relief prominent in his demeanor.

“Loki, what’s wrong?” Tony asks as he’s dragged outside. He’s surprised to see the patient gurney still in the rig and Clint doing chest compressions.

“It’s the last patient, fire rescue just got him out with the Jaws of Life. Lots of crush injuries, Tony. Our mechanical chest compressor broke.” Loki doesn’t have to say anything more than that. Clint looks exhausted, he’s probably been doing manual compressions for at least twenty minutes, maybe more if the fire department guys let him see the patient while they extracted him.

The thing about the mechanical chest compressors is that even if they aren’t the most easy to use or any more effective than manual, it leaves the EMT hands-free to address other situations that need life-saving attention. On two-man teams like this, when one person has to drive, keeping the heart beating is priority.

Tony jumps into the rig, grabbing one end of the gurney so that he and Loki can get it out. Once they’re clear, he brushes Clint away and jumps on top of the gurney, straddling the patient to perform compressions. Loki pushes them into the ER and Tony calls out instructions for others to help them.

Once someone has intubated the patient, Tony moves down, slipping somewhat on the bloody floor. His arm is caught mid-windmill and he shoots a quick grateful smile at Loki before getting into the groove.

_Crush injuries._

_Coded once on the trip to the ER._

_Hypovolemia._

_Compartment syndrome._

Tony knows what the medical diagnosis is, but sometimes it’s hard to draw focus away from the mangled mess that used to be a fully functional pair of legs. He’s not super confident that this patient is going to make it, but he does his best. He could pass this on to another nurse and head home to get ready for the party, but it doesn’t seem right.

Sometimes, a connection is made between caretaker and patient, even if it’s one-sided and it becomes necessary to see things through to the end, regardless of the outcome. So Tony stays, working on this last patient, pushing past his own exhaustion and hopelessness as the patient codes one more time.

It takes them almost another hour to stabilize before pushing him into the elevator to an OR. Tony stands in front of the gray doors long after they’ve closed, blood seeping through his flimsy PPE onto his scrubs. Tony doesn’t know the guy, doesn’t know a single thing about him, but he hopes his patient lives.

***

Tony’s never been so grateful to be home in his life. His apartment is his safe zone, and he’s filled it with everything he finds comfortable. It smells like coconut and lavender, scents that have always relaxed him and late afternoon sunshine streams in through the large south-facing windows leaving the place just this side of too-warm. It’s decorated in welcoming reds and browns, with subtle hints of gold here and there.

He eyes the plush blankets stacked on the couch but decides his bed will be worth the wait. His bag drops to the ground with his leather jacket on top and he slumps into the kitchen for a glass of water and a couple painkillers. He walks to his en-suite bathroom with his eyes closed, feeling his way to his contacts case, excited to rip the darn things out before they dry out and suction to his eyeballs forever.

Tony undresses, wishing he had time to take a bath. His apartment has a tub and he loves to soak in it for obscene amounts of time to forget all the stress of his job, especially after emotionally difficult days, but he’s got to be at Jan’s for the party in just over five hours. He still spends more time than necessary just standing underneath the scalding spray of water of the shower, letting it pound into his neck and shoulders. Between that and the ibuprofen, he’s starting to relax.

He doesn’t bother dressing after, just dries himself off (mostly) and flops face first into his pillows. Groaning, he sets an alarm on his phone, tossing it in the direction of his nightstand before succumbing to his exhaustion.

He wakes some time later to a cool hand between his shoulder blades. “Hmmph?” He grumbles, not bothering to move any part of him. A soft chuckle follows and the hand begins to move, pushing down on his spine and traveling the length of it. He sighs, melting into the touch.

Another hand joins, massaging at his neck and the junction of his shoulders. “Tony,” a familiar voice says quietly. It’s male, though. None of his guy friends have a key to his place. “Tony, are you awake?”

Curious, he rolls over, hip bumping into whoever is sitting next to him on the edge of his bed. Opening his eyes a bit, he’s surprised to see, “Loki?” His voice is rough with lack of sleep and all the talking he’d done at work.

Half of Loki’s mouth quirks up in an almost-smile. “Hello Tony. Sleep well?”

“Yeah, not long enough, though,” Tony talks through a yawn, following it with a stretch, arching his back off of the bed and twisting this way and that. “How’d you get in here anyway?” He just now notices that Loki’s hand is now on his chest and he’s incredibly aware that he often sleeps in the nude. How far down are his sheets?

“Well, Jan was concerned when you didn’t show up to your party and weren’t answering your phone. She couldn’t leave her house unattended and as the only completely sober person there, I volunteered to come check on you. She told me where you keep the spare key.”

Reassured, not that Tony had been that concerned; he nods, closing his eyes. He just needs another moment to gather himself to wake up. Loki’s hand finally moves and Tony is delighted when he brushes his long, lean fingers through his hair. His head tilts almost by itself, trying to get closer to that incredible feeling and he sighs happily.

“You’re in the wrong profession, Loki.”

“These hands save lives, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” smugness coating his voice. “You should probably get up, though, Tony. We are already quite late to your party.”

“Ugh, fine.” He glances at his bedcovers, then over at his closet and attached bathroom. “A little privacy, maybe?”

Loki just arches one perfect eyebrow at him, smirk firmly in place. “Whatever, stay for the show.” Tony gives up, scooching across the bed away from his friend. He doesn’t actually care if the other man sees his booty but there are some things only lovers get to see. Tony’s also well aware that his ‘bubble butt’ is one of his finest features. Quite the _asset_ , one could say.

Grabbing his glasses from his nightstand, he wanders to his dresser, pulling out a pair of comfy well-worn jeans and the topmost t-shirt. Screw it, he’s done trying to impress Bucky and Steve. He’s so tired and sore from pure exertion that he just wants to be comfortable and maybe nap on Jan’s couch for a while. He can’t even muster enough energy to care that his dates are probably alone with his shark-like friends.

Eh. They seem like tough guys, they’ll survive.

Throwing on some deodorant and his clothes, he brushes his teeth quickly, but decides to leave his hair product-free and his stubble in place. It’ll be a crash course in ‘workaholic Tony’. The bedroom is noticeably empty when he steps out, but finds Loki quickly enough waiting for him by the main door holding out his new leather jacket and a to-go cup with the Starbucks logo.

Tony slides into the sleeves of his coat and eyes the cup. It smells heavenly and he wants it. “Is that for me?” He asks sweetly, fluttering his lashes falsely.

Loki huffs a laugh. “Of course. You forget I’ve seen you at work in the middle of a double shift, and the occasional triple. I know how worthless you are without caffeine.” He hands the cup over.

Tony takes it, holding it up to his face to enjoy the smell before gulping down a large swallow. “I guess I can deal with being worthless if it gets you to bring me coffee,” he says as they exit his apartment and walk down to the street.

Loki’s lime green Charger is parked right out front, in a reserved space, but that sort of thing has never stopped Loki from doing what he wanted. The car was really the only thing that reflected the fact that Loki came from old money. He’d had a falling out with his father years ago, resulting in him being cut off and having to get a regular job, but Loki kept the car.

Tony had never been in Loki’s Charger, but he’d seen it and drooled over it from afar. It wasn’t quite as sleek as most of the sports cars that Tony would buy if he ever won the lottery, but it was still a fine piece of machinery. Loud and fast and flashy.

“Oooh,” he coos, dancing a little excited jig on the sidewalk. “You’re picking me up in the Charger? You’re spoiling me, Loki!”

Loki smiles, one of his rare real ones and opens the passenger door for Tony. “I think that just this once it’s alright. Don’t let it go to your head.”

Loki drives like a maniac and Tony loves it. He spends the ride laughing and whooping with joy as they take corners too quickly and cut across the lanes, Loki shifting gears quickly and easily. It goes a long way toward dissipating the last lingering tension he’d been carrying from work and when they arrive at Jan’s place, he’s relaxed and grinning from ear to ear.

“Tony!” Jan yells, giving him just enough time to open his arms before she’s flinging herself at him. He hugs her tightly, laughing at her enthusiasm. “I’m so glad you’re here! I was so worried! What happened?”

“I fell asleep and didn’t hear my alarm go off. Sorry, Jan.” He stumbles a bit as she steps away from him suddenly, but Loki steadies him by wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

“It’s ok, I’m just glad you’re here now! Loki, thanks for picking him up. Do you know where the beer’s at?”

“It was my pleasure,” Loki replies smoothly. “And yes, I did see the beer earlier. Shall we?” He directs Tony toward wherever the beer must be and Tony follows willingly. He should be finding his dates and hanging out with them, since it’s mostly the point of the whole event, but he’s having fun with Loki.

Loki is funny and easy to hang out with, not to mention very free with little touches. Tony is a tactile creature and he appreciates every small bit of physical contact. Yes, he realizes that Loki is probably flirting with him and he probably crossed a line waltzing around his bedroom naked, but Loki wasn’t being rude or overbearing about it. It’s nice.

So he’s more than content to keep Loki’s arm around his neck, tucked up close to that trim tall body. It’s comforting and safe here, same as he feels when he has Natasha draped all around him. Until it backfires on him when they near the cooler and come face to face with Bucky and Steve.

They’re leaning on the kitchen island, Steve cradling a beer with both hands while Bucky’s pose mimics Loki’s. Bucky spots them both, his easygoing expression instantly souring. The tensing of his body must alert Steve because he whips his head around from where he’d been talking with Clint. At least Steve looks excited to see him, but Bucky’s reaction already has Tony’s mood plummeting.

“Steve! Bucky! Glad you guys could make it!” He gives Loki a brief side hug, a silent thank you for the support, before stepping out from under his arm. “I’m guessing you haven’t met Loki yet. He’s an EMT who frequents our hospital.” There he goes with his nervous rambling again; would he ever learn to harness his mouth? It seemed painfully obvious to him when he was uncomfortable with situations.

Fortunately, Loki and Steve are on good behavior. Loki steps toward the others and Steve quickly meets him halfway with a handshake. “Hi, I’m Steve. It’s nice to meet another friend of Tony’s,” he says genuinely.

“A pleasure,” Loki replies and Tony’s impressed with how honest that sounds, because he knows his friend is lying through his teeth.

Steve steps back and unsubtly elbows Bucky in the side, making the brunette step forward and grudgingly offer his own flesh hand. They grip each other tight enough for their arm muscles to visibly cord and Tony is a little worried that a fight’s going to break out. While it’s awfully flattering to be garnering this much attention from so many attractive people, a fight in Jan’s kitchen would be mortifying. 

The thick tension is broken when Clint launches himself at Tony, gripping him in a tight hug that lifts his feet off of the floor and planting an unpleasantly large, wet kiss on his cheek. “Tony! Good to see you, man!” He yells, startling everyone in the kitchen.

Tony laughs, surprised that he suddenly has so many allies. “Hey Clint, good to see you too!” He pats the man on the back heartily.

Things get quickly out of control as Thor enters the room, his girth almost blocking the door completely. “Tony! You’ve arrived! Oh, hugs all around!”

Clint and Tony scramble to separate, both fervently yelling their objections, but he grabs the two of them in his beefy arms and squashes them against his chest.

“Thor! Stop! Need to breath!” Tony wheezes, slapping ineffectually at Thor’s shoulder. Clint’s face is only inches away from his and turning comically red.

Loki is pulling on Thor’s arms as well. “You imbecile! Don’t kill the guest of honor!”

Thor frowns, setting them down but Tony just laughs and adjusts his glasses so that they’re not hanging haphazardly off of his face. “Thanks Thor, just ease up on the enthusiasm a little. Now, is there actually any beer in here or what?”

“Here.” Steve holds an opened bottle of beer out to him, his beautiful blue eyes a little unsure. Tony’s familiar with how Steve must be feeling; left out, mocked, and embarrassed. So he smiles warmly, taking the drink with one hand but grabbing Steve’s hand with his other, entwining their fingers. He’s glad that things with Steve are still easy and pleasant.

“Thanks, Steve. I’m glad you could come. Sorry about these hooligans,” he nods toward his friends, grimacing as Clint lets out a loud war cry and jumps on Thor’s back.

“Forward noble steed!” The EMT yells and, of course, Thor obliges with some roaring of his own; Loki on their tail, letting loose a string of profanity.   

Steve laughs, squeezing his fingers. “Me too, they’re a fun bunch.”

Tony finds himself stuck staring into Steve’s eyes, just basking in the joy and affection he can see there and cataloguing their gorgeous shade. He’s interrupted when Bucky steps up, managing to stand next to both of them.

“They’re certainly an interesting bunch. That Natasha’s a bit on the scary side,” he says, and Tony catches his slight glance around the room, as if making sure she wasn’t listening in. Natasha would be thrilled when he told her that.

“She is, but you’ll get used to it, and don’t let her tell the story of how we met. She didn’t really stab me in the thigh.” He leans to the side enough to bump his shoulder into Bucky’s.

“She what?!” Bucky blurts out, eyes bulging in shock.

“I just told you she _didn’t_ stab me in the thigh.” Tony gently pulls his hand from Steve’s to grab Bucky’s, hoping to reassure and calm the man. The guy has a serious overprotective instinct. “Well, I guess, technically she did stab me in the thigh, but it was to save my life. So we should all be thanking her, actually.”

“Tony,” Steve starts, putting a hand on his shoulder, thumb rubbing against his clavicle where his stretched out t-shirt dips. “That’s not comforting at all.”

“Yeah, I guess you guys should hear this, but can we go sit down somewhere? I’ve been on my feet way too long today.” The beer he’s drinking is hitting him hard and making him tired again. The guys don’t say anything, but Bucky drags him to an empty loveseat, squashing Tony against the armrest, his warmth leeching into Tony where they’re pressed together. Steve ends up on the adjacent recliner close to Bucky.

Tony can’t help but smile as Bucky keeps their conjoined hands in his lap, reaching for Steve’s with his prosthetic. “Better?” He asks, concern bleeding through and it eases the angry, lonely beast that lives in Tony’s chest. It’s gratifying for Bucky’s attention to be on him this way.

“Much, thanks guys. So, basically, I’m allergic to rum and six years ago at the company holiday party, someone spiked the punch.” Tony shrugs, still a little embarrassed about the incident. “Cue one severe anaphylactic reaction and Natasha stabbing me in the thigh with my epipen. You’d think that a room full of medical professionals would have had a faster reaction time, but I ended up spending that Christmas recovering in the hospital. It was pretty bad, but hey, I got my best friend from it.”

Amazed silence follows his quick story, but Tony’s thinking about everything he hadn’t shared. How distrustful he’d been of everyone at that point in his life, his panic at not being able to get to is epipen easily, the terror he’d felt thinking that he was going to die choking as his airways swelled shut. He squeezes his eyes shut, trying to push the memories away.

An arm is suddenly around his shoulders, pulling him toward Bucky for a tight embrace. “Damn, baby,” he breathes into Tony’s hair. “Guess I owe her a thank you, after all.”

Tony relaxes into his hold, grateful for the support, even more so when he feels Steve sit on the armrest behind him rubbing his back. Tony doesn’t tell that story often and there’s been enough turnaround at the hospital that few people know about it. Jan doesn’t even know about it; the joke about Nat stabbing him was just easier to tell. He doesn’t like how vulnerable that information makes him, how horrible that night had been for him.

Steve squishes his way onto the couch with them even though it’s much too small for three grown men, especially when two of those three are of Herculean proportions. They talk about lighter things, silly things and Tony enjoys the warmth from being sandwiched between the two, all his worries melting away.

He doesn’t realize he’s dozing until he’s being lifted and moved to the larger sofa. “Wha?” He manages to get out, opening his eyes enough to see Bucky’s blurry face. “My glasses?”

“They’re on the table, Tony. Steve and I have to go, but Jan’s here, she’ll take you home in the morning.”

“K, don’t steal my glasses. Need ‘em,” Tony slurs, concern for his specs at the forefront of his mind for some reason.

There’s laugher and two separate kisses to his forehead. “I wouldn’t dare. They look too good on you, punk.”

The next time Tony wakes, he’s snuggled up with a blanket and a hundred pounds of red-head stretched out on top of him. He wiggles deeper into the couch, shoves his face into Nat’s curls, and wraps his arms tightly around her waist, letting sleep take him once more.

***

Things are calm and pleasant for all of two days after the party. Tony texts with Steve and Bucky frequently and Bucky even leaves him a very adorable, bumbling voicemail asking if he’s available for dinner some night this week. Something casual, Tony can pick the place.

When Tony turns up to the burger joint close to the hospital, he’s surprised to find Bucky alone in a red-vinyl booth. Bucky smiles and stands when he sees Tony enter, pulling him in for a quick hug.

“Tony! Hey! You look great!” Tony looks down at himself when they separate, his black sweater and jeans far from special. He’s even wearing his glasses, which is commonly known as his ‘I don’t care to try right now’ look.

“Uhh.. thanks. You too, Bucky,” Tony says honestly, because even in simple dark wash jeans and a maroon Henley the man is devastatingly attractive. Bucky’s hair is loose and Tony represses the rush of lust at the thought of tugging those locks and wrapping them around his fingers. They slide into opposite sides of the booth and Tony grabs the menu asking, “So is Steve joining us soon?”

“No, actually.” Tony’s head jerks up to meet Bucky’s eyes. “I wanted to take you on a date. Just me.”

Tony can’t stop the excited smile from taking over his face. “Really?” Warmth was filling his chest at the thought of Bucky wanting to spend time with him.

Bucky, though, deflates a little at his reaction, slipping his hand across the tabletop to grasp one of Tony’s firmly. “Yeah, Tony. I know I messed this up really bad on our first date and I still feel like a schmuck about it, so I wanted to take you out on a real date and do it right.”

Tony is almost giddy with happiness. He truly hadn’t believed that Bucky would be so dedicated to their relationship working out, since it would indeed be a lot of work on his part.

 “Stevie and I were talking,” Bucky continues, “Or, well, he ripped me a new one about what a possessive asshole I am.”

Tony snorts, bringing his other hand up to cover his mouth. The last thing he wants is to offend the other man. “Yeah, I got that Bucky, loud and clear.”

Bucky shakes his head. “No, Tony. Steve did yell at me about my behavior on our first date. I’m talking about what happened at your party and how rude I was to some of your friends. I guess I just wasn’t expecting them to be so…” He seems to be at a loss for words.

“Mean? Strange? Overbearing?” Tony offers with a shrug.

“Touchy.”

Thinking back to the party, Tony recalls being manhandled by Loki, Clint, and Thor, tackle-hugged by Jan, and ended up sleeping the night on the couch with Natasha. He busts out laughing. “Oh my gosh! It worked!”

 “What worked?”

“They’re not usually quite that touchy with me, except Thor. He’s always like that. I think it was Natasha’s subtle way of getting revenge on you for our first date. She’s a little on the protective side and probably wanted proof that you are into me.”

Bucky is pensive for a long moment and Tony is just starting to regret his words; maybe he didn’t want to hear about how all of Tony’s friends basically thought he was an uncaring jerk. Then one side of his mouth quirks up. “She’s a sneaky mastermind that’s for sure. But yeah, you can tell her it worked.”

“She’ll love it. She’ll be gloaty and smirky for at least a week.”

Bucky scoots to the edge of his seat, closer to Tony. “Anyway, back to the point. Stevie and I talked and think it would be good to ease our way into this. Steve thinks it would help if we dated you separately for a little bit until we’re all a little more comfortable with each other. Then try the three of us again. I think that’s a little fairer to you, since Steve and I see each other all the time. What do you think?”

Tony is dumbstruck. That’s super considerate of them and it’s beyond reassuring that they’ve obviously put a lot of thought and conversation into how to bring him into the relationship. He’s definitely not used to it. He’s given another moment to think it over when the waitress stops by to take their orders.

He and Bucky share a silly glance when they both order the ridiculous double bacon cheeseburger. Bucky throws in an order of onion rings for them to split and Tony thinks he might explode from the bubbles floating in his stomach.

As soon as the waitress is out of earshot, Tony scoots to the front edge of his seat, leaning across so they’re as close as they can get from opposite sides of the booth. “I think that’s a great idea, Bucky, and I really appreciate you asking me. Thank you.”

Bucky grins and pulls Tony’s hand in, pressing a kiss to the back of it. “Ok, so, will you date me, Tony?”

Tony knows that this isn’t going to be an easy fix-all for them. There’s still a huge knot of hurt and mistrust deep in his heart that will take time and dedication to untangle, but maybe these guys are actually willing to try. This could be the start of something great.

His leg brushes against Bucky’s under the table, but instead of retreating like on their first date, his foot is nabbed and trapped between Bucky’s. “Yes,” he replies. “I’d love to.”

**Author's Note:**

> PPE = personal protective equipment  
> MVA = multiple vehicle accident


End file.
